Kansas.gov

UI Tax FAQs

 

How do I set up my account?

How do I get a PIN number?

What do I do if I lost my username, password or PIN?

Will I be notified when my quarterly reports and payments are due?

Do I have to file or pay unemployment taxes to Kansas?

Do I have to file online?

What are wages?

Who is an employee?

Who is an employer?

Employee or Independent Contractor?

Who is a domestic or household employer?

How secure is your online system?

What are the Trade Adjustment Assistance Program (TAA) and the Reemployment Trade Adjustment Assistance (RTAA) Program?

 

 

How do I set up my account?

It is quick and easy to register for an account online. Go to our Web site and select "Apply for a tax account online." Then select "File a KCNS 010 Status Report to register your business for Unemployment Tax" on the next page. You will be taken through the steps to create a new unemployment tax account. Business owners, their accountants or a third-party administrator (such as a payroll service) may establish an unemployment tax account for an employer. After we receive your completed form, we'll determine whether you're liable for unemployment taxes. If so, we'll assign your business a six-digit employer account number, which should be included on all future correspondence with KDOL, and a personal identification number (PIN), which you will need for future direct entry of electronic wage reports.

How do I get a PIN number?

Once we assign you an account number, we'll send you both the account number and a PIN number. All existing accounts have been sent a PIN number.

What do I do if I lost my username, password or PIN?

You can call our office in Topeka at 785-296-5027.

Will I be notified when my quarterly reports and payments are due?

All quarterly tax reports and payments are due by the end of the month following the end of each quarter. For example, the first quarter ends on March 31 and reports and payments are due by April 30. Only employers with fewer than 50 employees who filed a paper report in the previous quarter will have a Quarterly Wage Report and Unemployment Tax Return mailed to them. The form will include the account number and tax rate, how to reach the employer’s field representative and other information.

Do I have to file or pay unemployment taxes to Kansas?

All employing units doing business in Kansas are subject to the provisions of the Employment Security law. However, not all are subject to the taxing provisions of the law. Coverage is determined by the type and nature of the business, the number of workers employed and the amount of wages paid for services in employment. Every employing unit that begins business operations in Kansas is required to file form K-CNS 010, "Status Report," within 15 days of the date of first employment.

If you meet liability requirements at any time during a year, you must file a Quarterly Wage Report and Unemployment Tax Return for all quarters of that year in which you had any employment. A quarterly wage report must be filed each quarter thereafter until your account is closed. Employers with 50 or more employees are required to file their quarterly reports and make payments online.

More information is available in the Employers Handbook found online. Or you may call 785-296-5027 between 8:00 a.m. and 4:00 p.m. on workdays with your questions.

Do I have to file online?

All employers are encouraged to file electronically. Quarterly filings and payments can be made easily and securely on our website – www.KansasEmployer.gov. After completing the online registration form, employers can enter wage data directly into a secure form. Data files may also be uploaded. For more information on file uploading, please see Upload Your Quarterly Wage Report. Either way, the data is sent in real time and tax contribution information is automatically calculated. An employer with 50 or more employees or third party administrators with more than 50 client employees are required to electronically file all Quarterly Wage Report and Unemployment Tax Returns and make any payments online.

What are wages?

All money, the value of meals and lodging, or other goods and services provided to an employee as payment for personal services are "wages." Payment may be by private agreement, consent or mandated by law. You can find a table with some examples of taxable and exempt payments on our web site.

How you pay your employees does not change your tax liability. Commissions, payments by the day, by the hour, by "piece rate," or any other measurement are wages, even if the employee is a casual worker, day or contract laborer, part-time or temporary worker.

More information is available in our handbook.

Who is an employee?

As defined in the Kansas employment security law, "employees" include:

  • Any officer of a corporation
  • Any worker who is an employee under the usual common law rules
  • Any worker whose services are specifically covered by law

An employee may perform services on a less than full-time or temporary basis. The law does not exclude services from employment which are commonly referred to as day labor, part-time help, casual labor, temporary help, probationary or outside labor.

More information is available in our handbook.

Who is an employer?

Two types of employers are those who run a business and those who hire domestic services. Employers who run a business can be a person or a legal entity and include:

  • Sole Proprietors
  • Partnerships
  • Joint Ventures
  • Corporations
  • Limited Liability Companies
  • Estates
  • Associations and Trusts
  • Nonprofit and Charitable Organizations
  • Public Entities, including State and Federal Agencies
  • Other Organizations

Most employers become subject to state employment taxes upon paying a worker(s) more than $1,500 in a calendar quarter and must register with the Department within 15 days.

More information is available in our handbook.

Employee or Independent Contractor?

An employer-employee relationship exists when a person who hires an individual to perform services has the right to exercise control over the manner and means by which the individual performs his or her services. The right of control, whether or not exercised, is the most important factor in determining the relationship. The right to discharge a worker at will and without cause is strong evidence of the right of direction and control. Among other considerations:

  • Whether the one performing the services makes the services available to the general public.
  • Whether the principal or the person providing the services supplies the tools, equipment and place of work for the person doing the work.
  • The length of time for which the services are performed to determine whether the performance is an isolated event or continuous in nature.
  • The method of payment, whether by time, a piece rate or by the job.
  • Whether or not the work is part of the regular business of the principal.
  • The extent of actual control exercised by the principal over the manner and means of performing the services.
  • Whether the worker can make business decisions that would enable him or her to earn a profit or incur a financial loss. Investment of the worker's time is not sufficient to show a risk of loss.

A written contract that claims to create the relationship of principal and independent contractor is not controlling if the practice of the parties shows that the principal retains the right of control under the common law test.

A strong indication of employment is when the work being done is an integral part of the regular business of the employer and the work is performed at the place of business. If you are unsure as to whether your workers are employees or independent contractors, see our handbook or e-mail us.

You also may want to review the information on worker misclassification.

Who is a domestic or household employer?
An employer of domestic services can be a:
  • Private household
  • Local college club
  • Local chapter of a college fraternity or sorority

Domestic work includes the services of cooks, waiters, waitresses, butlers, housekeepers, governesses, governors, maids, valets, baby-sitters, janitors, laundresses, caretakers, home health care workers, handypersons, gardeners, chauffeurs, crews of private yachts and pilots of private airplanes for family use.

A domestic employer becomes subject to state employment taxes as follows:

  • When cash wages of $1,000 or more are paid in a quarter.
  • Once a domestic employer meets the limits of cash wages, all cash and non-cash payments such as the value of meals and lodging must be reported as wages.

How secure is your online system?

Our system is very secure. Employers and employer representatives can securely upload wage data files to the Kansas Department of Labor or file online. We use the Automated Clearing House method to electronically transfer tax payments. The ACH system is a nationwide network designed for this purpose and uses services operated by the Federal Reserve System to maintain security and increase the efficiency of transactions.

How do I get more information?

Our handbook provides information about your unemployment tax account. It is available to read online. If you require a paper copy, a PDF file is available for download and printing. The handbook has a list of field offices; you may call or fax your local field representative with questions. Our administrative office staff also is available by phone to assist you with your unemployment tax questions.

What are the Trade Adjustment Assistance Program (TAA) and the Reemployment Trade Adjustment Assistance (RTAA) Program?

Trade Adjustment Assistance (TAA) and Reemployment Trade Adjustment Assistance (RTAA) help workers who have lost their jobs as a result of U.S. foreign trade. The TAA Program offers a variety of benefits and services to eligible workers to include job training, income support, job search and relocation allowances; and a wage supplement to eligible reemployed workers 50 years of age and older (RTAA). Eligibility requirements for TAA benefits are based, in part, upon certified petitions filed with the U.S. Department of Labor for workers adversely affected by foreign trade. These Federally funded services are provided to eligible workers at "NO COST TO THE EMPLOYER."

Contact the Kansas Dept. of Commerce, Workforce Service Division at: workforcesvcs@kansascommerce.com or (785) 296-0607 for more information about the TAA and RTAA programs and other programs through this agency.